Semi-(dietary)-Vegan Start

Contrary to what you may think from the title, I’m not going to persuade you to become a vegan (or a vegetarian). All I am advocating is to occasionally let go of meat solely for the purpose of saving money. Adding meat to your meals generally adds to the cost of your food purchases. Hence, subtracting meat will save you quite a sum of money!

Before I move on though, I want to make it clear that I do not intend to undermine the vegan lifestyle by asking the general public to be semi-vegan. I myself have great respect for vegans as they contribute to a better environment and greater welfare for animals. Vegans are definitely a great example of how people can live their lives. I would love to elaborate but I must move on. Feel free to check out the links below to just two vegan websites for more information.

Cash Strapped

Currently in my fourth (and hopefully last) year of university, I am in a small sum of debt from the past three months, therefore I need ways to save money; desperate times call for desperate measures. And when you are cash-strapped to the point that you are counting every dollar you part with, you tend to think more critically of how to save money. Although it is no secret that avoiding meat saves you money, I didn’t actually practice this until recently.

Start Slow

For the meat lover letting go of meat will be hard I’m sure. Therefore it is best to take smaller baby steps. Maybe start with having no meat for just one day out of every week. If you are willing to go for more, then by all means go right ahead.

The most versatile foods, such as pasta, rice, beans and peanut butter are a lot cheaper than meat products. And even when counting the more expensive vegan products such as soy meat and vegan cookies, the savings will still outweigh the cost of meat.

It may sound hypocritical at first, but remember that you don’t have to call yourself vegan. Most people (including myself) are not able to sacrifice meat entirely. Remember that you would only have to avoid meat products for a certain number of days out of every week solely to save you money. It’s not called vegan, it’s simply economical and environmentally friendly.

Economically, Environmentally and Animal Friendly

To continue on my last point, going (at least partially) vegan incurs other benefits. Money aside, people who avoid meat products are environmentally friendly. In fact, you would lower your carbon footprint more so by going vegan than from swapping your car for a hybrid vehicle. There is also the benefit of saving animals; every vegan person saves about 50 animals a year!

In addition to the economical and environmental benefits, including more plant-based foods in your diet will incur a much better overall health. You’ll feel better about yourself and you’ll have a healthier wallet!